Assignment of Proceeding
Michael R. Peevey is the Assigned Commissioner and Maribeth A. Bushey is the assigned ALJ.
1. SCWC has sufficient water resources to meet the present and future needs of its customers.
2. The 5,000 AFY of water rights leased to Folsom are no longer useful in the provision of water utility service.
3. The Folsom water lease does not impair SCWC's ability to provide service to the public.
4. Ratepayers have not suffered any diminution in service or extra expense due to the sale of water rights to Folsom.
5. § 789 and § 790 address the ratemaking and accounting treatment of utility property that is no longer necessary or useful in providing water utility service to the public.
6. § 789 and § 790 protect ratepayers by requiring the return of the unused proceeds from the lease not invested in water utility infrastructure or plant solely to ratepayers.
7. SCWC's application meets § 851 statutory requirements and adequately addresses the typical factors considered by the Commission in such applications.
8. The lease is not adverse to the public interest.
1. SCWC's application to permanently lease 5,000 AFY of American River water rights to Folsom should be approved pursuant to § 851.
2. SCWC should establish a memorandum account to record Folsom lease revenues in accordance with § 789 and § 790.
3. Today's decision should be effective immediately.
IT IS ORDERED that:
1. SCWC's application to approve, pursuant to § 851, the permanent lease of 5,000 AFY of American River water rights to Folsom is approved.
2. SCWC shall record the revenue from the permanent lease of 5,000 AFY of American River water rights to Folsom in a memorandum account as prescribed by § 789 and § 790 of the Public Utilities Code. Interest shall accrue on this account at the 3-month commercial paper rate. Any proceeds not used for water utility infrastructure or plant within an 8-year period from first being booked, shall be allocated solely to ratepayers. Any lease revenues collected from the effective date of D.04-03-069 through the effective date of this decision, shall be recorded in this memorandum account with interest.
3. Application 04-07-018 is closed.
This order is effective today.
Dated , at San Francisco, California.
